Flames dominate over Akron 21-12
Following a game that saw Liberty put up 36 points and 428 yards of offense at Wake Forest, the Flames eked out a win in a defensive slugfest over the Akron Zips, 21-12.
While it might not have been pretty, Head Coach Hugh Freeze will take the win — however the Flames can get it.
“Winning college football games is hard, and I’m thankful that our kids fought and found a way to win a game,” Freeze said.
Winning college football games is even harder without your starting quarterback, and the Flames did not have their starting quarterback in Kaidon Salter, who missed the game due to a groin injury.
Redshirt junior Johnathan Bennett started the game in place of the injured Salter, making his first career start.
The Flames, who were huge favorites (ESPN’s football power index giave them a whopping 96% chance to win), looked as if they would cruise to victory in the early going.
The Zips started with the ball on offense after Liberty deferred the coin toss to the second half, and the team quickly went three-and-out after pressure from the defensive line forced three straight incompletions from Akron quarterback DJ Irons.
The offense, led by Bennett, turned around and led a phenomenal eight play, 61-yard drive, capped off by Bennett throwing a strike to wide receiver Khaleb Coleman for a 22-yard touchdown to give the Flames an early 7-0 lead.
Akron moved the ball down the field a little bit on its next drive, but any momentum was quickly halted when safety Robert “Rocket” Rahimi picked off Irons’ pass in the end zone.
The Zips quickly returned the favor, however, with a turnover of their own in the form of a strip sack of Bennett.
Akron appeared to be in good position to get points on the board after starting that possession at the Flames 44-yard line, but a joint sack by defensive lineman TreShaun Clark and Kendy Charles halted the drive and forced another Akron punt.
The ensuing Flames drive resulted in a touchdown, as Bennett led a methodical eight play, 68-yard drive, capped off by throwing a strike to wide receiver Treon Sibley for a touchdown, the first reception of the season for Sibley.
The score put the Flames up 14-0 early in the second quarter, and it looked as though the rout was in session, but the Zips defense had other ideas.
Akron blocked a Nick Brown field goal attempt on Liberty’s next drive and then forced a punt to put themselves in position to score right before halftime.
ne plays in just 56 seconds to set up a 34-yard field goal by Noah Perez to make the score 14-3 at the intermission.
Whatever adjustments Akron made at halftime seemed to pay off, as it came right out of the gates in the third quarter and forced a Liberty three-and-out to get the ball back.
Akron led an impressive 13-play, 58-yard scoring drive, aided by a targeting penalty on Rahimi, to put three more points on the board with another Perez field goal.
The Zips’ defense then tightened up even more, forcing a Liberty punt and a Bennett interception on its next two defensive possessions, putting Akron in prime position to put points on the board.
The Zips did just that, scoring a touchdown on an 11-yard pass to receiver Alex Adams from Irons.
All of a sudden, the Flames found themselves with just a two-point lead early in the fourth quarter, and Akron could tie it up if it converted the two-point conversion.
The Zips put it in the hands of quarterback Irons, who ran up the middle but fell short of the goal line, a common theme from Liberty’s defensive line all night.
Liberty’s offense, now with just a 14-12 lead, could not get anything going as Akron forced two more three-and-outs.
The turning point of the night came from the left leg of punter Aidan Alves, who booted a ball 64-yards that the Flames downed at the Akron 1-yard line.
Backed into its own end zone, the Zips were stifled by the Flames’ defense, forcing them to punt after another three-and-out and giving the Flames great field position.
In front of an announced crowd of 20,004 fans desperate to see something happen on offense, Freeze made a change at quarterback, putting in redshirt freshman signal-caller Nate Hampton in search of a spark.
Hampton provided such a spark, leading a huge eight play, 52-yard drive, capped off by a Dae Dae Hunter touchdown run from 1-yard out to give the Flames a 21-12 lead and put them ahead by two possessions.
That score would hold up until the end of the game after Liberty’s defense forced Akron to turn the ball over on consecutive drives.
Hunter paced the sluggish Flames offense, finishing with 118 rushing yards and a touchdown on just 18 attempts.
“As soon as you get in the game, you can’t let off,” Hunter said. “You have to go 100% every time, so that’s kind of the mentality I have.”
Liberty improves to 3-1 on the season after the win, and the team is set to face in-state opponent Old Dominion on the road Oct. 1 at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
Mccusker is the assistant sports editor for the Liberty Champion